Beijing says war cannot solve disputes and plans to send special envoy to the region.

On Thursday, China urged the parties involved in the Middle East conflict to comply with international law, protect civilians, halt military operations, and resume dialogue to prevent further escalation.

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Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said her country is “deeply concerned” about the current situation in the region following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran.

“War and the use of force cannot resolve problems,” she said and reiterated that dialogue and negotiation are the appropriate path to resolve disputes through political and diplomatic means.

In recent days, China has intensified its peace efforts through telephone conversations between Foreign Minister Wang Yi and the top diplomats of Russia, Iran, Oman, France, Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

During those conversations, Wang stressed the need to respect the principles of the United Nations Charter, spoke out against the frequent use of force in international relations and called for military operations to stop.

Mao also confirmed that China plans to soon send its special envoy for the Middle East, Zhai Jun, to the region to mediate in search of dialogue that could help pacify the area, although she did not provide dates or further details about the trip.

“The protraction and escalation of the conflict serves no one’s interest. China believes that war and force cannot solve issues once and for all, dialogue and negotiation are the right solutions, and political and diplomatic settlement of disputes and differences should be upheld,” Mao said.

Earlier, China — Iran’s main trading partner and its largest buyer of oil — condemned the death of Ayatollah Ali Jamenei.

On Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said that China and Russia “are supporting politically and in other ways” his country.

teleSUR/ JF

Sources : CGTN – EFE

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